Red Strings
by Starkiller
Summary: Hare ponders the object of his affections. Tiger broods over the target of his aversion. Shounen ai, TigerxHare. UPDATED with Tiger's POV
1. Hare's Trick

**A/N:** I had to write another Hare fic, I love him so much! And there's not nearly enough Hare romance in my humble opinion. Who couldn't love the bunny?  
**Tiger:** "grunt" _Me_

I wrote this while wracking my brains trying to write more chapters of "Pendant", which I WILL update! This is piffle really, nothing very inspiring. It's also shounen-ai guys, you've been warned! Flamers I don't mind (they bump up the review count! ) but please guys, don't bother me with reviews like 'well it was alright, but Hare isn't gay'. It's fanfiction, eejits and I'm really not interested in your opinion.

**Red Strings**

It's been a long time since the seven of us came together on our quest for the Phoenix. Twelve years to be precise.

We're settled now, back in Holly's village. It was strange at first. The place was empty and abandoned. It didn't take a fool to see how deeply Holly and Suezo were affected by it. But Genki was there for them. Everything has a way of working itself out when Genki's around, Mr. Energy. It gets me thinking about why the kid came here in the first place, or more to the point, _how_. I'm sure I wasn't the only one who thought about the possibility of Genki being the Phoenix's soul. I guess sometimes you can't explain everything with science. You just have to feel.

That's how our adventure changed me. I've turned from a rabbit that thinks with his heart instead of his head; a big fool, like fools before me with an ordinary dream.

To be honest I didn't think any of us would adapt to this quieter way of life at first. Our first adventure was over and we were embarking on a new one. Turns out this one's just as dangerous as the old, what with Golem's experimental cooking. Yeah, he made his dream come true alright - head chef in our restaurant. The Inn we took over was a dilapidated old ruin, abandoned after Naga's assault on the village all those years ago. We spent a year working on it, transforming it into "The Phoenix" (naturally that was my brainchild). Now we have folk travelling in from all over just to get a look at the seven who battled Muu! I still get a kick outt've it. Tiger calls me a swindler for charging for autographs. Well hey, every little helps!

So I guess you could say everything's perfect, a real fairytale ending. At least, that's what I try to convince myself of.

I suppose you could say I'm well experienced in matters of the heart. That would come as a surprise to many. Everything about me says I don't get too close. But I fell into the old trap again.

There's no reason to push you away by telling you how I feel. Maybe you already know, but I doubt it somehow. You're always peering over my shoulder when I'm working. You weren't exactly thrilled that I became treasurer here. I guess you still don't trust me. Not entirely.

Perhaps you're right not to. After all, if you even had the slightest clue what I'm really thinking when you press against me, what it means to me feeling your breath on my neck, you'd never want to look at me again.

It amuses me to think you don't have a clue. I don't know how I manage to hide it. It's the biggest thrill coupled with the hardest loss.

You call me a thief, but you're the biggest hypocrite. You took my heart and you don't even realise what you've done.

People get suspicious about us, you know. All these years together, we're the only ones who haven't settled down. Genki and Holly will be starting a family soon. Even Suezo's met his match (that was an ugly slap in the face if ever I felt one).

You tried it once, settling down. It didn't work for you. It didn't work for Granity either. You never told us why. Those days were hard for me. I could barely look at you, let alone talk. But you kept pressing me, asking me 'what I was up to'. That's when I flipped. We had a real argument that night. There were no petty remarks or name-callings, not even a blizzard. We didn't speak for a week afterwards and true to character neither of us ever apologised. It wasn't long after that you and Granity went your separate ways.

Now things are back to normal. But not to worry, that's sure to change with the coming of Holly's son. At least it had better be a son. I've got thirty golds riding on it.

They say it's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. Guess there rings some truth to that. I don't mind, not really. As long as we're together, I don't mind.

And it's not like you can get rid of me now, you hound. Cause let's face it, we're Soulmates.

**oOo**

**A/N:** I strip for reviews!


	2. Tiger's Grudge

**A/N: **Thank you very much for the reviews guys! As requested by **Jade**, Tiger's POV (don't worry, I am writing Pendant too). Again, this was scribbled down very quickly so excuse it's crappiness.

**Red Strings**

I hate you. I hate everything about you. I hate your laugh, that incessant, relentless noise which fills my head and boils my blood. I hate how you use it to distract everyone when they get too close to the secrets you guard so fiercely. I hate your attempts at keeping everyone at arms length. You're too cowardly to show your real feelings.

I hate you because you're a swindler, a money-grubbing furball and a con artist if ever I've met one. I can practically hear the wheels creaking in that furry head of yours - always thinking, always figuring out. It's maddening! You never let up; you're as stubborn as the kid. You can't bear to leave something until your thirst for information is quenched and you've finally cracked whatever mystery or riddle the universe has handed you. Then a spark ignites in your eye and the fur on the ruff of my neck stands on end, because I know this can only mean trouble.

Sometimes I think you'd sell your own mother for a few golds. Sometimes I wonder why I didn't let you tumble down that cliff.

I hate the games you play with my head. I hate myself for allowing you to get away with them. You know how to bait me and like a fool I always take it. You treat life as a game of chance and you've gambled more than a handful of golds in the time we've been together. Much more.

I hate the way you treat people as a means to an end, the way you first treated us. You can be far colder than I can. I hate when your smile doesn't reach your eyes. I hate you because you're cowardly and dishonest. Are you even honest with yourself?

I hate that you're a better thief, I hate that you humiliated me, I hate your stubbornness, your pigheadedness, your self-assurance. I hate your loyalty, I hate your mask, I hate that you love me.

I was just another riddle for you to figure out. Tiger of the Wind following a rag-tag group of children and monsters must have appealed to your sense of humour and endless curiosity. Joke's on you, rabbit. Evidently, in your studies you uncovered more than you probably wanted to. Even now I can see you peering over the edge of your book to watch me. You've been on that page for ten minutes now. How blind do you think I am?

In the beginning I had resigned myself to believing you came along to test your wits and fill your greedy pockets. But as it turns out, you had your own scores to settle with Muu. You lost a partner of your own to war; Fairy Hare. I know that now. I hate that too, because now we share something more in common.

You're perceptive. It's frustrating. You've always seen right through me. I couldn't hide my relationship with Granity from you, so I didn't bother. It hurt you and I was glad. Then you did something completely unexpected. The wheels slowed, the laughter died, the taunts and cracks at my expense fell away to polite babble and for the first time I glimpsed a shadow in your eye. I told you to drop your act. You told me you weren't the only one wearing a mask. We'd never fought like that before. It left me feeling empty and sick because I knew you hated me as much as I hated you. Granity left soon after.

I hated the way you looked at me, compassion in your dark eyes, when I killed my own brother. I hate that you forgave me. I hate that you pulled me through each long day after, distracting me with your jibes and cheap tricks.

But most of all, I hate the person behind the mask you wear. And that for every hate I love you more.

* * *

Any reviews are really appreciated! I might continue and write a final scene, haven't decided yet. 


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